Still holding on
by thenopetrain
Summary: The team gets invited in on a case in Flagstaff, Arizona where a potential string of murders seems to be connected. Rossi/JJ maybe some other couples. I suck at summaries, k?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:**Criminal Minds belongs to its wonderful creators and not me.

**Summary:**The team gets invited in on a case in Flagstaff, Arizona where a potential string of murders seems to be connected.

**Notes:** I love me some pairings so this fic will primarily be Rossi/JJ and I might add some glimpses of others as it goes on. At this point I'm just playing around with a plot I've had running rampant in my mind for a few weeks. I am notoriously known for my lack of updating but I PROMISE you I have more time on my hands this time and will be updating regularly :D This is also my first Criminal Minds story. So if I don't do it justice, let me know what I can do to make it a more enjoyable read for you. Reviews are appreciated, as well as criticism; I'm not a touchy person so don't worry about being honest. So without further ado, here we go!

* * *

It was close to noon when a knock came to Aaron Hotchner's office door. In its frame stood Penelope Garcia, a file in her hand at least a couple of inches thick. Dread settled into the pit of his stomach as he motioned her inside.

"What've we got?" He asked, leaning forward over the paperwork he'd been doing.

"Sir." Garcia greeted hastily before opening the file up and placing it before him. Now spread out over his desktop were the photos of various victims; their faces completely indistinguishable. Hotch began to mentally take notes as he looked at them, picking up the report of one incident.

"Acid?" He looked up at her seriously and viewed the small shudder that came from their Tech Analyst.

"Yes, sir. Flagstaff, Arizona where three men and two women have been found in similar manners. I just got off the phone with Flagstaff PD, sir, and they are stretched pretty thin; I think there might be something to this."

"Why didn't they call us in sooner? If they've had this many victims, why hold off?" His voice was level, though something told Garcia he'd already made up his mind.

"I don't know the chief seemed pretty 'short' on the phone. I'll gather the team." She excused herself, trying to flee the scene of those nasty pictures on Hotch's desk but cringed when she was stopped.

"Garcia, I'm going to need you present on this one." He had a knowing, apologetic look on his face when she turned around, an excuse not to go ready on her lips; but the thought of it died when she saw his expression.

"Course, Hotch."

"And don't bother gathering the team, tell them wheels up in an hour; we can brief them on the way." And with that she made her way out of his office.

* * *

"Babygirl, why are your eyes closed if you aren't asleep?" Morgan's voice practically spoke the smile adorning it.

"Because Handsome, there are all kinds of nasty in those files you all have and I think seeing them once is too many times." Rossi and Prentiss shared a look of smirks and small laughs before opening the folders that had recently been placed in front of them after the plane had taken off. Everyone had been curious as to just why they were flying out so soon without any information. But by the fallen and serious expressions of his teammates, Hotch figured they had a pretty good idea about why they'd been ushered into the plane so quickly.

"Five already?" Rossi shot the comment towards Hotch and Garcia, with a furrowed brow.

"Cale Johnston, 32, Henry Dalmer, 32, George Torst, 32, Maria Salazar, 29, and Jennifer Hallsworth, 29. All defaced and then injected with 140mg of morphine as the cause of death. No post-mortem injuries." Hotch rattled off the facts quickly, ignoring the way Garcia hummed and plugged her ears.

"So he puts them through terrible amounts of pain and then makes their deaths comfortable?" Prentiss was having a hard time believing someone would go through the trouble of torturing the victims and then just taking the pain away.

"Angel of Mercy." Mumbled Rossi, reflexively glancing towards Garcia; suddenly remembering the night she'd gotten shot, the next day when JJ had had to shoot the man in the head.

"Maybe. I mean it's completely likely. This Unsub has a definite target age; men, 32 and women,29. It could be that this Unsub might have been medical personnel who lost a patient after a fire or gas leak." Reid offered to Rossi's comment, breaking the spell over everyone else who'd also thought of Garcia's close call.

"Maybe." Hotch affirmed and then looked to the others. "Dave, you and Reid go to the Hospital see if you get anything; I want to run with Reid's and your theory. Morgan, Prentiss, go to the last crime scene and see what you can find. Garcia and I will get things settled at the station. We land in three hours so I would advise you all to get some sleep." Hotch watched them all nod rather sagely before he looked to Rossi. "Dave, a minute?" Hotch moved to the front of the plane and took one of his usual seats, his back to the cockpit. Rossi joined him after a moment.

"What's up?"

"I wanted to thank you, actually. I got a call from the Director of the DOD at the Pentagon and we worked out that JJ can come back in two months." A rare smile lit Hotch's face as he spoke quietly, simultaneously listening to the others tease Reid about not bringing clothes that might be appropriate for the winter-wonderland Flagstaff had become during these December nights. Dave smiled, despite himself and shrugged; a sly look on his face.

"Oh that? It was nothing." He played it off as nonchalantly as possible, but he was damn excited about her coming back. "Plus, these past weeks have been…hard on her. She needs her family and we need her. For Garcia's sake and your sanity." Rossi joked a bit and finally fixed his dark stare on Hotch who nodded in agreement, though the smile had certainly disappeared beneath his stoic walls again. Truth be told, Dave hadn't left the DOD alone since Will had decided to leave JJ a few weeks prior. Something inside David had snapped when he opened his door one evening to a stony-faced, teary-eyed Jennifer Jureau and a sleeping Henry. Of which, Aaron knew practically everything that had transpired that evening. Dave had confided in the man after having to babysit Henry one Saturday when JJ had been called in to work.

"Well I told Garcia to keep it on the down-low until we knew for sure, but I'll be announcing it to the team when we land."

"Sounds good." Rossi started to settle back into his seat as he listened to the team behind him, a yawn following. "I'm going to catch a few hours before we land." He said as he drifted off into sleep smiling.

* * *

Reid hadn't stopped talking since Hotch had delivered the news of JJ's return in the next few months. He'd been spouting out things he would do with Henry, about how, as his Godfather, it was only practical that he teach the boy something about all of his nerdy expertise.

"For the hundredth time, Ried, I don't think JJ will appreciate you teaching her son how to speak Klingon and Elvish." Stated a rather amused Rossi as he drove the black SUV towards the Flagstaff Medical Center. Reid, who was riding shotgun, just laughed. For the next few minutes their ride was relatively silent; Reid kept playing with the radio, while Dave managed to deal with the coma-inducing classical music station the kid had managed to find.

"Why did JJ go to you?"

"How the hell did you know about that?" Rossi was taken aback by Reid's knowledge of the fact.

"Oh, well, um, JJ said that I shouldn't worry because she already had 'Dave' watching Henry. It's just normal for maybe a Godparent to watch their Godchild when he or she needs babysitting." Clearly a little jealous, Reid fixed a confused look on Rossi as he drove. Dave could have sworn that somewhere in Reid's brain a huge flashing sign that read 'DOES NOT COMPUTE' threatened the existence of the young genius.

"I don't know, maybe she couldn't reach you or Garcia?"

"She didn't call….." Mumbled the young man accusingly before they pulled into the Hospital parking lot near the Emergency Center. Rossi didn't answer, finding that he didn't have one for the kid before he parked and got out.

* * *

"Garcia I know that you probably won't want to talk about details of the case, but-"

"My sexy superior, nothing could ruin my mood this fine and glorious day." Garcia interrupted with a small laugh, her bout of theatrics, _thank God_, done while Hotch and she were alone in the conference room setting up. "My baby butterfly is coming home and I will no longer have to bring blindfolds and earplugs to team meetings!" Hotch could barely suppress the grin threatening to invade his facial features. After he'd made the news public, Garcia had been able to gleefully express her excitement in front of everyone, which had allowed each of the BAU members some much needed laughter and happiness.

But as the day progressed into a long week, Hotch wondered if he shouldn't have waited until after the case was over to fill them in on such happy news. As he looked at their tired and worn faces, he couldn't help but feel as though they all needed a pick-me-up. It was Friday evening and outside the station snow fell heavily on the small city and its inhabitants. Somewhere in hotel rooms, families visiting the area had long since tucked their kids in bed and local residents were probably enjoying the last warmth of a fire as the embers burned slowly into ash. Thinking about things like that made him miss Jack; made him want to go home and hold his son before tucking him into bed. But he was hundreds and hundreds of miles away from his home and his son would have been in bed two hours ago.

"Garcia, any follow-through with the Hospital?" Rossi suddenly asked, staring at the map Reid was standing next to.

"Unfortunately no. The only thing I've been able to pull up since we arrived was an accident involving an ambulance en-route to the hospital on December 10th, 2002. Apparently it was snowing when a semi collided with the ambulance and sent it into a gas line. A few sparks later and the entire thing went up in flames; killing everyone inside except one technician, but he moved away six years ago. His name was Joseph Kersey, he now lives in Denver." Garcia made a face at the photos she had been able to pull up.

"Let's all go back to the hotel. There's no use running ourselves into the ground, we have no answers tonight anyway. After we all get a good night's sleep then we can come back fresh tomorrow." Hotch's order was not questioned. Morgan was practically dancing in the driver's seat by the time Prentiss and Reid got in. Rossi, Hotch, and Garcia in the other.

Dave had assumed the role of driver as Hotch and Garcia got into the already started Tahoe. Rossi cranked the heat as he pulled out and glanced in the rearview mirror at a nearly asleep Penelope Garcia. A week in Flagstaff, in the freezing cold, with lack of sleep, did not do the team any favors and Rossi was happy Aaron had finally caved in giving them a much needed sleep.

"We'll get 'im Hotch. Trust me." Dave's low voice whispered as he tried not to disturb their sleeping techy in the back.

"I know, I just hate to think we're no closer than we were when we arrived; even after two more victims." Two days ago, two victims, same ages as before; a man and a woman this time. That was when the press exploded and it was actually Rossi who had to make a formal statement, standing along side Garcia as they asked for diligence within the community to catch the killer while Hotch dealt with various Editors from around the state who wanted to print the story.

"You're wrong. Those last two were rushed; they were semi-identifiable by their faces. He's getting messy, panicked. A spree like this will only breed mistakes for this guy." His consoling must have done some kind of reassurance because Hotch switched the station to a Christmas channel and they listened to Dean Martin and Martina McBride sing 'Baby it's Cold Outside' until Dave pulled into the Hotel parking lot. They woke Garcia up who mumbled something incoherent and stumbled out of the SUV and towards the main entrance to the hotel. Their rooms at the Little America Lodge beckoned to them all. Rossi had grabbed hold of the keys in the ignition, fully intent on shutting the truck off and joining the rest of his team as they made their way towards their rooms, but stopped. "Hey Hotch, I'm going to go get something to eat real fast, I'm starving." He gave a sheepish smile, albeit tired; the apparent combination made his superior smirk.

"K, be careful." Hotch left the Tahoe with nothing in mind but sleep and this frustrating case.

"Will do." Dave answered and put the car in reverse. Soon he was out and traveling towards the Coco's he'd seen on his way in. _Open 24-hours, bless the Coco's CEO,_ he thought dramatically as he pulled in. It was only when he was seated that he found the coffee in front of him not as soothing as he'd thought. The waitress had come to take his order a few minutes later and he'd ordered the Lumberjack Special. It was just after 3 in the morning when his phone started to ring.

"Rossi." He answered out of habit.

"Did I wake you?" JJ's voice was music to his ears as he pushed the coffee away from him; substituting the warm liquid for something much more relaxing.

"Haven't even made it to bed yet." He assured her, and then immediately regretted doing so. _She shouldn't have to worry about it._ "What are you doing up at 6 on a Saturday morning?"

"Rough week huh?" She asked as she watched Henry sleep fitfully. "Henry had a tummy-ache this morning and I'm really hoping he hasn't caught any bug going around."

"I hope he hasn't too. Hotch told everyone about your return the other day." He said as the waitress brought his food to the table, leaving him be at the sight of a smile on his exhausted face.

"Oh boy, I bet Garcia popped." She laughed quietly into the phone on the other end as she pictured an over dramatization of Pen showering everyone in rose petals and singing 'happy day' while she danced around the office.

"Let's just say she has an entirely new set of nicknames for everyone, and they are all ten times more mushy-gushy than the last ones." He chuckled and took a bite of his eggs.

"Good, how's everyone else?" She had to have stepped out of Henry's room, because she was no longer whispering.

"They're all ecstatic. Don't be surprised if you get a call from all of them soon, especially Reid. He won't stop talking about it. Espeically on the way to the Hospital"

"The hospital?" There was a slight edge to her voice, a sharp and sudden tone of worry.

"Ya to interview doctors." He replied absent-mindedly as he tried to picture her in her home, tried to picture the way she looked as she stood in the hallway talking to him. He felt himself in the need to move all of a sudden and he pulled his wallet out, not even finishing his meal or waiting for the check, before tossing a twenty on the table.

"You had me going there. Hey hold on just a sec." He heard her put the phone down on the counter as he walked out of the restaurant and out into a heavy snowstorm. _Perfect,_ he thought sullenly. Dave loved the snow, loved the atmosphere it gave, loved the smell of it…just loved it in general. But the fierce cold that whipped at his face as he made his way towards the SUV was not a welcome thing when he was running on an hour of sleep from the previous night. He yawned as he got in the Tahoe and started the engine. He was beginning to think she'd forgotten about him when she picked up the phone again.

"Sorry, I wanted to put some coffee on." She sighed after, running a hand over the back of her neck. "I wish I was there." She said finally, her eyes concentrating on the floor in her kitchen.

"Me too." His voice seemed quiet on the other line and she had to question what kind of response that was. _You too?_ Not 'the team would love that' or 'we really need you' it was 'me too.' "Hey, uhm, if and when we get a few days off after this case, you want to take Henry up to the mountains? He could play in the snow and we could go to the tree-lighting ceremony in a small town I know of." He was a bit hesitant in asking only because he knew she'd be occupied with divorce papers and court dates and changing offices yet again.

"We'd love to! You know he asked about you the other day?" That brought a smile to his face and quelled the butterflies in his stomach.

"Really? What about?" He asked as he pulled onto the highway accidentally. _Damn Arizona roads,_ he thought as he looked at the exit sign; 3 miles. Well that was certainly out of his way.

"Just about where you were, and when you were coming back." She informed him as she filled her mug with coffee.

"Well you can tell him that I'll be back as soon as I can." By that time he's actually made it to a little service road with a sign that read Navajo Rd. He pulled a u-turn without thinking much of anything and was forced to drive along Thorpe Park, a huge camping area with a few homes scattered throughout.

"Oh my gosh, it's almost seven here, sorry I kept you up."

"Hah, it's no problem. I was out eating and have now successfully gotten myself lost." He passed his predicament off as a joke which she still felt the need to apologize for. "Seriously hun, it's not a big deal." After inspecting the dark and snowy terrain outside the car windows, Dave guessed he was traveling along side a raised part of the road; the trees to his right seemed shorter.

"It's almost four there right?" JJ honestly just wanted to keep conversation going now that she'd effectively killed it with her apologizing.

"Yep. The rest of the team's probably been-" His voice cut off suddenly. A ton of raucous noises filling his end of the conversation.

"Dave?" JJ's face scrunched up in concern when she didn't get a response after a few seconds. There were sounds on the other end of the phone, a rustling and what sounded like the crunch of broken glass. Somewhere a car door opened; the click of the handle audible. "Hello?" She heard breathing on the other end of the phone, a deep breathing that sent chills down her spine.

"Dave can't talk right now." And the phone went dead….

* * *

**Heheheh I know. But I love cliffhangers! :D**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:**Criminal Minds belongs to its wonderful creators and not me.

**Summary:**The team gets invited in on a case in Flagstaff, Arizona where a potential string of murders seems to be connected. Rossi/JJ maybe some other couples. I suck at summaries, k?

**Notes:** Thank you to those of you who reviewed! I'm really excited to see where this story will go, considering I make up most of it as I go along. xD This chapter is mostly about the team finding out about Dave's crash and Dave finding out that help isn't always what it seems to be.

* * *

Aaron Hotchner's eyes stared daggers at the phone buzzing on his bedside table between his and Morgan's beds. After he'd said goodnight to Dave out by the truck, he'd headed straight to bed for maybe the first time in his life. It was Morgan's fault, in part, that he hadn't been able to stay up and finish dotting the I's and crossing the T's of some paperwork he'd brought back. Derek had literally unplugged all of the lights in the room so Hotch couldn't sneak one on after he'd fallen asleep. _Sleep,_ Hotch thought as he glanced from his phone to the younger agent, _was an understatement._ Derek had practically passed out after kicking his shoes off and plopping down on the bed closest to the window. Naturally a light sleeper, Aaron was now cursing himself for not putting the damn thing on silent as he grabbed it from the nightstand and quietly slipped out of the room and into the hallway. Unlike his counterpart, Hotch had changed into sweats and an FBI t-shirt for bed; definitely not the kind of man to sleep in his work clothes. Not that he could call the hour he'd gotten 'sleep' anyway.

"Hotchner." His voice gruff as he rubbed a hand through his bedhead hair.

"Hotch! It's JJ." A frenzied, panicked voice over the phone made the Unit Chief instantly alarmed; sleep forgotten completely. "Something's happened to Rossi."

"What?" Hotch was already moving down the hallway towards Garcia's and Prentiss's room, his fist pounding on the door. "You mean he hasn't come back yet?" An angry Emily Prentiss opened the door and peeked out, instantly noticing the alarm on Hotch's face.

"What-" Emily started but Aaron waved her off, taking the phone from his ear and putting it on speaker.

"I've got Prentiss here, JJ." He said as Emily closed the door behind her, not really caring that she didn't have a key to get back in.

"Hey Jayje." She yawned.

"Hi Em, ok listen." On any other day, JJ would have been all squeals and jokes with Emily, but this morning was not one she had the luxury of being anything but serious and worried. "I called Rossi to see how you guys were doing and we talked for a while, he said he'd taken a wrong turn or something while he was driving back, that was ten minutes ago, and then something happened, sounded like a car crash, and this voice…dammit! If he hadn't been on the phone with me, he would have been able to avoid all of this." JJ was slowly getting off track and Hotch had to keep her talking as the facts remained fresh.

"It's not your fault JJ…..a voice? JJ you said a voice?" Emily had brought a hand to her mouth and had started biting her thumb nail, her eyes glued to the cell phone in Hotch's hand.

"Ya, I was calling out for Dave and this voice came on the phone and said 'Dave can't talk right now' or something like that. You guys have to find him! Where's Pen?"

"I'll get her." Emily turned around and knocked rapidly on her room door, trying vainly to wake up the dead-to-the-world techy. It took more than a few seconds for Penelope Garcia to comprehend what was going on.

"What?" The normally chipper Garcia was not thrilled at being awoken so soon.

"Track Rossi's phone, and the truck. I need to know where he is right now." It was Hotch's voice that startled the Techy into motion, leaving Emily to hold the door open as she ran back inside and grabbed her laptop. Pressing her glasses onto her nose, Garcia sat hunched over the computer in mute frenzy.

"It's a no on his phone!" She yelled from inside, immediately soliciting two worried agents now hovering over her.

"No service? Not on?" Emily asked.

"Not on. So unless it's turned on, then I can't do anything about it." Garcia looked up at the two with an apology in her eyes but was snapped back to the computer a moment later by Hotch.

"What about the truck?" Hotch's calm voice was edged; a strain that could only be identified as the worry he was trying desperately to hide. Leaders had to remain calm. "JJ, Garcia's looking into tracking the SUV, we didn't get anything on his phone." The only response was a deep sigh and what sounded like pounding feet on the other end of the phone.

"I'm packing Hotch, I'll be there soon. Text me any new information and don't argue." JJ took the liberty to hang up on Aaron before he could so much as get a word out. Hotch snapped his phone shut and glanced at the time before muttering a low curse.

"Garcia, call me as soon as you find him, Prentiss get dressed and meet me in the hallway in five; I don't care what you wear right now. I'm going to wake up Morgan."

* * *

The SUV had slid at first, the initial collision on the driver's side of the vehicle casting instant momentum towards the embankment on the passenger side. Rossi hadn't seen a thing, hadn't realized anything was coming for him, until the large, dark shadow collided with his side of the Tahoe. Instinct told his left arm to come up and shield his face, but it didn't quite make it all the way up as he was tossed to the right, the airbag blowing up into his face a second later. That sliding continued until the tires met the edge of the pavement, and the truck went tumbling down the side of the road. It flipped a few times and finally came to a shuddering halt on the driver's side. Nearly all of the windows had broken in the SUV's fall down the embankment, the severely cracked front window seemed the only one in tact. At first, there was nothing but the rapid pounding of his heart in his ears, and the heavy breathing of his lungs. Rossi didn't dare move. After years in law enforcement and some time in the Marines, he had garnered a respect for staying still; to assess. He hadn't identified any immediate pain until a sound broke through the careful confines of the battered vehicle, causing him to jump; the reaction from his body was less than wanted as he groaned from the sprouting pain in his chest. His head hurt, his arms, his legs; _everything_ seemed to be in some kind of pain.

"Sir?" Someone called out to him from above, shining a flashlight in his eyes to which he grimaced. "Sir, can you hear me?" The controlled level of the person's voice told Rossi he was dealing with someone professional, someone who dealt with pressure well. _Shit Dave, stop profiling the help._ The next thing he knew, glass was raining down on his head from the above passenger-side door. Rossi flinched away from the debris, finding it hard to breathe, finding it harder to keep his eyes open. "Sir, I'm an EMT. I need you to stay still." _Like I'm going anywhere you idiot._ God he hated medical personnel; loved them when they saved those he cared about, hated them when they wanted to help him. For some reason they always sounded incompetent when he was the patient. His heart was still pounding in his ears when his stomach suddenly clenched in alarm. JJ, he'd been talking to JJ.

"My phone…" Dave's raspy voice tried to rise over the crunching and positioning of the man above him. "My phone…" Where the hell was the phone? _I need my phone._ He couldn't stop asking for it, couldn't stop thinking of the gorgeous blonde on the other end who was likely freaking out by now.

"Sir, you're in shock. Can you tell me your name?" The easy-going voice only irritated him more as one of his eyelids were raised and a penlight was flashed into his pupils, causing him to turn away abruptly. The guy wasn't getting it, he needed his phone, and he needed to tell JJ to tell Hotch that he had crashed, that he was ok. Apparently the man had found his credentials after he hadn't answered because someone was checking his pockets and calling his name.

"David, I'm going to have you out of here as soon as I can, you just hold tight." As the EMT was speaking, Rossi lifted his head slightly and saw the dim light on the screen of his phone, the cracked screen showed the identification of the caller, reading a fuzzy 'JJ' as the seconds the call was connected ticked by. Had he really been talking to her for an hour? The phone was just laying there beyond the steering-wheel; cradled in the snow replaced by the broken window. He was about to motion towards it, but a hand snatched the thing from his line of sight.

"Wait…" He grunted. With it gone, Rossi tried to move, the momentary spell broken as he tried to push his left elbow underneath him in order to sit up partially; a hand reaching to undo the seatbelt. His legs, he found, were out in front of him as if he were still driving; the only difference was that the car was now on its side. His jacket and long-sleeved shirt had saved him from the pains of the broken glass as he vainly tried to shift himself off of his left shoulder and into a position where he could actually _move_. But he was forced back, a foot pressing down roughly onto his right side in order to keep him still. Rossi hissed in pain, the source of his labored breathing apparently a broken or bruised rib. His side lit in a fiery pain that instantly sent stars swimming to the corners of his vision and made the little breath he had leave his lungs. His right hand came up to push the foot away, to relieve some of the pressure but he couldn't; the hand just fumbled around the boot of the man helping him with no real strength to push it off. Somewhere in the distance he heard the man talking on what must have been his phone, but the words were not the ones he'd hoped an EMT would say to the special woman on the other end. _I can't talk right now?_ He'd definitely be able to if the man would get his damn boot off his side. He was suddenly accosted by pain as the man shifted, leaning even more weight on his side as he bent downward once more. A small sound was emitted from Rossi's mouth as he tried to catch his breath, finding that it came in tiny gasps rather than actual, full intakes. "Can't…breathe…" A simple, pleading reminder to the EMT above him; of which had to be the worst in Rossi's book.

"Just a second Agent Rossi." The voice was much closer this time; Dave glanced up to see an empty syringe near his face. The man was fumbling around with it; taking the pressure tab out with a yank before he moved his foot and placed it on the steering wheel. "This is going to hurt, but it'll help you breathe." The voice had changed from methodical to distant as if this person was going through a common routine. A second or two later, the EMT was moving the right side of his jacket away and pulling at the edges of his dress shirt in order to expose the skin. The cold invaded and Rossi shivered as goose bumps raced up and down his spine. Gloved fingers were pressing around his ribs, carefully avoiding the source of the injury but not entirely missing the bruised skin and muscle. A second or two later, the man had found his spot and plunged the needle between two of David's ribs. Initially, Dave had wanted to cry out, but after a second or two, he found himself with a rush of breath. It took only a few seconds for him to begin to breathe at a more normal rate than he had as the Medical Technician secured the needle inflating David's right lung.

"…Thanks…" David breathed as his body seemed to relax now that he wasn't fighting so hard to breathe. That seemed to get a smile out of his sole companion in the Tahoe, who slung his bag over his shoulder and leaned in to cut at the fabric of Dave's shirt. Rossi barely noticed as the man went about making sure his work would remain intact.

"I need to get you out of here, you up for helping me?" The EMT slapped Dave's face a few times gently in order to coax the man into wakefulness. When all he got in response were a few nods, the EMT placed a careful foot near Rossi's head and a hand under his left shoulder in order to pull him into an easier position. With Dave's help and some encouragement from the Technician, they managed to maneuver themselves out of the wreckage and onto level ground below the street. Rossi's dark eyes looked around the din of their surroundings and he was instantly aware of three things; the embankment he'd thought was just a minor shoulder, was much more like a steep hill, there was no ambulance, and the man claiming to be an EMT was certainly not dressed as one. There were probably a few answers to the last two observations, but after working a going-nowhere-case for the last week, Rossi was a little more than suspicious. A hand suddenly cupped his mouth and nose, a cloth brushing against his skin along with a sweet smelling aroma he identified as chloroform. He tried to hold his breath, tried to move, but the man had already begun to apply pressure to Rossi's ribcage, and the injury made him gasp, a reaction eliciting the response of a deep intake of breath before he knew no more.

* * *

"Garcia, tell me you have something." Hotch answered as he closed the door to his room, Morgan walking towards an approaching Penelope and Emily.

"North Bonito Rd, right by Thorpe Park." She handed him a slip of paper with the coordinates for their GPS systems. "It hasn't moved since I found it." This news she said with tears in her eyes as she looked at each of the remaining members. _We get my pumpkin back and now Rossi?_ She kept telling herself that she'd wake up but this was no nightmare to be rescued from.

"Alright, thank you Garcia, keep tabs on it until we get there. Morgan call Chief Hendricks, we'll need possible medical assistance and back up. Let's move." Prentiss and Morgan followed their leader briskly through the hotel corridors and out to the remaining vehicle where Prentiss immediately called Garcia to keep her on the line and on speaker, while Morgan phoned the Chief of Police at his home. Aaron sped down the icy roads, mindful of the snowy conditions but praying against the odds that all they were going to come across was an alive David Rossi and maybe a dented Tahoe. But his gut told him that another long day had just started…

* * *

**It was shorter than the last chapter, not a ton of JJ but there will be in the next chapter! She'll be enroute to Flagstaff and the team will meet up with her and fill her in. As for Rossi, you'll just have to find out. Hope you liked it!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:**Criminal Minds belongs to its wonderful creators and not me.

**Summary:**The team gets invited in on a case in Flagstaff, Arizona where a potential string of murders seems to be connected. Rossi/JJ/team dynamics and maybe some other couples. I suck at summaries, k?

**Notes:** So this chapter took a little longer to write up, I'm sorry! Thanks for your reviews, as always I love getting them! 8D I haven't a clue how many chapters this will be so let's just role with it xD

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_Four hours since Rossi's abduction._ Four very slow and painful hours. There had been minimal information passed on to her during her flight to Arizona. Worst of all, she was in coach with a man who insisted on telling her his life story and flight attendants who seemed out to get her with their always smiling and courteous faces. _Can't they see that I'm panicking?_ But they weren't profilers; they weren't as intuitive as the people she longed to see. After dropping Henry off at her mom's house, JJ had broken every vehicular law known to man in Virginia in order to get to the airport on time. She didn't have the luxury this time around to take the private line the DOD had. She didn't really need it and still felt too 'new' to ask for that kind of favor. On the other hand it would have been much nicer than pretending to be asleep after an hour in when the last thing she wanted to do was to be sitting here, resting, while every one of her friends was out in Northern Arizona searching for one of their teammates; one of their family members. If I had fought to stay, if I hadn't caved when Strauss forced my hand…I'd have been there, he wouldn't have been alone, lost, and he would have avoided the crash… _At this rate_, she told herself morosely, _anything could have happened by now._ JJ swore if the plane didn't fly any faster that she was going to storm the cockpit and demand that the pilot pick up speed. As it was, Jen already felt the need to strangle every happy and upbeat person near her. The laughing of children, the smiles of a couple across the isle, the complimentary drinks accompanied by their peppy handlers…all of it grated her nerves; depressing her mood further.

It was almost as bad as when she'd lost Spence out at that farm. The guilt she'd felt for letting them split up, the constant worry, the need to blame herself; it all came back to her now as she sat there. JJ had taken her phone out, scrolled to her inbox and had read the last message she'd received from Hotch about a hundred times before the plane had taken off: _"Found the truck. No Dave. Keep you posted."_ Those were the worst fragmented sentences she'd ever read in her entire life. It ranked up there with her and Will splitting up, Gideon's disappearance, Pen getting shot, Haley dying, and being transferred to the Pentagon. The list could probably go on, and when it did JJ found herself wishing that she could move more than a few feet towards the bathroom. She wanted to pace, she wanted to open her eyes and stare out at the daylight, but the man beside her had only shut up when she'd 'fallen asleep'. _Screw it,_ she thought and popped her head up, her hands instantly fumbling for her phone as if by some miracle another message would show on her screen, one of happy endings. She'd learned the hard way that endings were a hit or miss; happy, sad, devastating, glorious. With Garcia, endings were always happy, always romantic and held the childhood innocence of a fantasy. With Hotch endings were devastating, but a few were golden. Morgan pretended to have a happy ending, pretended to have that perfect image and perfect life; but they all knew otherwise and helped him achieve that happiness. Emily's endings were probably similar to JJ's, and that was why they were able to empathize so well. Reid's endings usually had a logical mirth to them, all questions answered, all except one which involved the disappearance of a father figure. Rossi's endings…she didn't know. They were a menagerie of different scenarios; happy, sad, disappointing, frightening…JJ sighed, evidently stirring her company beside her. The blonde held up a hand towards the man instinctually; her eyes still fixed on her phone.

"I don't care, so don't tell me." He had been about to say something, but immediately thought better of it. Which had turned out to be a smart move, because JJ had been fully prepared to tell him exactly how much she hated hearing that he was surprising his daughter in Phoenix for Christmas, that he had planned an entire night with his wife with the just the two of them as company. JJ's optimistic personality, the so-called 'glue' of the BAU family had come unraveled some time between hours one and four of Dave's disappearance. _Why do I feel like everything's falling down? Like I can't breathe?_ JJ willed the tears threatening to become visible away. No, she couldn't start crying now; she couldn't start breaking down before she'd even had a chance to find out more information. But the helplessness she felt thinking that Dave was missing didn't stem from guilt alone. There was some unidentifiable emotion causing her chest to constrict, to cause panic to swirl in her stomach. She just wanted the damn plane to _land…_

_

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_

"Hotch, over here." Morgan was inspecting the ground, his gloved hands pointing along a trail that led into the woods. "Drag marks." Aaron looked into the woods, the trees hiding various camping grounds and a few cabins in the distance. "Are we even dealing with the same guy here, Hotch?" Derek was questioning the victimology; it just didn't make any sense.

"I don't know. Two unsubs seems too coincidental, though." His monotonous voice seemed strained as he checked his watch for the umpteenth time since they'd arrived. He'd sent his team members back and forth to the station, the crime scene, and various places in town; positioning police officers with the help of the Sheriff at key points along the city limits and Reid's geographical profile. The clock was ticking, they all knew that, and Hotch could see the stress written on everyone's faces. "JJ should be landing in Phoenix soon, and I've already got her taking a connecting flight to one of the local airstrips up here; Reid and Garcia are picking her up." The offered information wasn't news to Morgan as he simply nodded, following the drag marks into the forest until they stopped. He'd walked the same path about a million times and he still found himself thinking it was all some weird alternate reality. No way could Rossi've been abducted, no way.

"There's something we're missing, he was getting sloppy, there has to be something here…" Morgan walked off into the forest a few paces and pivoted, turning to face Aaron and started to motion towards the overturned SUV. "I'm the unsub. I ram my car into yours until it rolls down the embankment and I don't suffer injuries that inhibit my ability to act quickly after the crash. I have two vehicles, one to ensure my victims don't get away, the other to abduct them; assuming my first vehicle has been incapacitated….so where do I put it?" The entire time Derek was talking, Hotch was studying the embankment, the truck, and the tire tracks leading up and down the embankment.

"A snow plow." He says suddenly, the level tone in his voice as if he's stating some random fact. "It makes me a formidable object, stronger than my regular mode of transportation and it's inconspicuous."

"So we're most likely looking for a guy who either works for the county or owns an attachment with a medical background. I'll call Garcia and Prentiss.

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Hours, how many hours? That was the one, nagging question in the back of Rossi's mind as he tried to listen to his surroundings carefully. The instant he'd come out of his induced unconsciousness, Dave had immediately begun to fake it in order to garner some kind of information that might be useful. So far, all he could hear was the wind blowing outside of where ever he was. And where ever he was was not a comfortable place. Sitting in a chair, his hands tied around the back of it, he remained with his head slouched to his shoulder, breathing as steadily as possible under the conditions. Pain radiated from his side where he assumed the needle still remained, he could feel his body as shivers ran up and down his spine; the after effect of the tremors inducing a less than pleasant feeling in his chest. A few more minutes and he'd deduced that the chair was metal, the room he was in was actually somewhere outside with no heat, and there were wires somewhere near his feet. Finally, painstakingly, David cracked his eyes open; his vision blurred as he tried to blink away the fog from the chloroform. _Where the hell am I?_ The room he was in was practically an icebox as it was exposed to the winter elements, the furious winds outside whistling through the storage crate. Which was exactly what it was a large, metal storage crate; dimly lit and freezing cold. The wires, he discovered a moment later, were connected to the chair. They snaked their way across the floor and towards a small switch dangling form a hook some five feet away. Dave looked around, and went to rise from the chair but found himself falling a moment later to the hard bottom of the crate, a loud thunk of the chair and the left side of his body as he lay stunned. His dress shirt was rumbled, cut from where the apparent unsub had made a neat square in the fabric for the needle which was unfortunately still in his lung. _My jacket,_ momentary hope filled him as he spotted it discarded in the corner. _Come on Dave._ The mental pep talk was short lived, his chattering teeth coming to a still. The door to the crate chose that moment to swing wide open and Rossi had to close his eyes as sunlight blinded him, temporarily shielding the identity of his assailant until he closed the door. The man was normal build, looked like he could have been some star athlete in high school or college, about six foot one, and was still carrying that damned first responder bag around his shoulders.

"I see you're awake, Agent Rossi." The man stood there, looking a bit amused despite the obvious worry etched on his face. "And it looks like you've managed to hurt yourself, let me help you." The last thing Dave wanted was to be touched, let alone by this man. Everything hurt so damn much!

"My jacket…" Dave slurred, a frustrated grimace crossing his tired face as he realized his tongue hadn't quite awoken yet. The man went about moving Rossi back into an upright position, minding the wires still connected to the chair and seemed not to have one bit of weariness as he checked David's ribs and the bandage that he'd placed there shortly after arriving to their mystery destination. _Why can't I move?_ Dave wondered, his muscles screaming as he tried to move more than just shifting in his seat; everything was so heavy.

"You can't have that just yet Agent." The man's words were suddenly dark; the cold baritone slicing the air like a threat with an equal tease to the EMT turned unsub's voice. "But if you're a good patient, and you answer all my questions, I'll get you all warmed up in a jiffy." The man demeanor changed from caring and doting to stiff and calculated, but his voice flip-flopped constantly from killer to savior; like he was talking to a kid one moment and a prison inmate the next.

"What do you want to know?" Dave muttered, his eyes leaning heavily on closing as he tried to stare up at the man responsible for his current predicament.

"There are rules I should explain first, David." Rossi decided instantly that he didn't like it when the man used his first name so casually. _So what did we do to piss you off?_ There had to have been something during this past week that made his MO change this drastically. But then again, unsubs were known to target law enforcement.

"Explain away." Rossi drawled sarcastically, not a second later did his body's muscles seize, an intense, breath-taking pain striking his body with such an extreme force that he was suddenly unable to breathe. What seemed like hours later, the unsub waved the switch Dave had seen dangling from the ceiling earlier in front of his face.

"Rule number one, respect. You ever hear of shock therapy, Dave?" A smile caught the mystery man's face, his eyes void of anything but a sick sort of excitement. "Well?" He pressed the button again, and Dave's body stiffened until a strangled cry left his lips.

"Ye…yes. I know…what it is." The words were barely audible in the small confines of the crate. Rossi was sure he was going to pass out, and he didn't want to think about what would happen if he did so. But instead he forced to himself to stay awake; he had to answer every single question, but he also had to stall…and stalling was what David Rossi did best.

"Good, now you've experienced a more…shall we say…electrifying version. Should we begin?" Dave nodded after the question, wondering how cold it was, how much time had passed since the crash, what his team mates were doing, if they'd found any leads, if someone had consoled JJ. _They have to tell her it isn't her fault._ He'd heard about the time Reid had been kidnapped by an unsub, how JJ had blamed herself…probably still did. He barely registered that the man was talking until an ominous silence filled the space of the metal crate. It wasn't a second later that the electric current coursed through his body again until he was left breathless, his heart hammering away in his chest as the pain from the current started to dissipate. "Now I'll ask again, why did you come to Flagstaff? Why now? Everything was fine until you showed up! I was doing fine! Why did you have to ruin everything?"

Stalling, it seemed, was going to be a lot harder than Rossi thought.

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"Pumpkin!" Garcia engulfed JJ in a hug the moment she was in reach.

"Hey Pen." JJ smiled, a bit sadly as she hugged one of her best friends. After a moment or two, Reid stepped forward and shyly hugged her as well; a goofy smile on his young face. "Spence your haircut looks great!" JJ tried to be happy in order to counteract the enormous amount of guilt pressing in on her from all sides. Everywhere she turned, she thought she saw Rossi, a man with a similar hair cut had been standing with his back to her earlier as they loaded off the small plane at the Flagstaff Airstrip, and she'd been embarrassed when she'd found out it wasn't him…even when she'd known all along. She barely heard the thanks from Reid as he ruffled his short hair with his hand.

"Come on, the truck's over here, it's freezing!" Garcia exclaimed and started walking towards the dark SUV.

"Any news?" JJ asked Reid hesitantly as they trailed after Penelope.

"Hotch and Morgan think that it was a snow plow or a truck with an addition; probability wise, a Ford F-150 or bigger style truck. Emily's going over the conference tapes, trying to pick anyone out in the audience that seems to fit the profile; she and Morgan think he might have been present when Rossi gave the profile to the public." Reid rapidly spewed the latest information and JJ balked.

"Wait, Rossi gave the press conference?" Since when? Why hadn't he told her? _Because Jen, it isn't important._ But for some reason JJ could NOT picture David Rossi talking calmly in front of a ravenous group of media persons.

"Hah, ya he was pretty pissed by the time it ended." Reid gave a crooked smile as he opened the backseat door to the SUV, allowing JJ to ride shotgun; he was used to the back anyway.

"Hey Pen-" But JJ was interrupted by Garcia's phone ringing, the caller ID flashing 'Sir' on the front.

"It's Hotch." Pen's voice was small, as she glanced up at the two. "Oracle speaking." She tried to maintain some semblance of herself in this crisis mode they'd all entered, but it was obvious to everyone that the pep was lacking.

"Hey Baby Girl, hold on one sec, I'm putting you on speaker." Surprisingly, Morgan's voice was on the other end of the line until they heard the familiar sound of their Unti Chief.

"Garcia, Prentiss thinks she found something on those tapes. Is JJ there?" Hotch's voice streamed in from the other end.

"Here Hotch." She spoke up on cue and listened to a deep sigh on the other end of the line.

"Good, I'll fill you in completely when I get back to the station. We're meeting in the Flagstaff PD conference room in twenty. Garcia be ready ID the man Prentiss thinks is our guy, Reid work on the geographical profile, we have a few points for you when we get back. I think we've finally caught a break." Hotch's matter of fact voice was the best thing JJ had heard all day. A break! Thank God! But she didn't know how long it would take them, she didn't know how long Dave had; which was slowly inching its way into her mind as dread once again replaced the slight elation of Hotch's confident words. As they drove on, JJ stared mutedly out the passenger-side window and tried to hold in the tears that started to pool in her eyes. Even though she needn't fear the two people in the SUV of ratting her out as she struggled with her emotions, she just hoped that as she reached up to wipe a hand across her face that they didn't notice.

They did.

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**Wooh. Ok so I know it took me a while to update but school and work bogged me down. Hope you enjoyed it! Things will start getting real interesting in these next few chapters, so I hope I'm keeping you guys on the edges of your seats! **


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